Best way to add capacity to leach field

Hey everyone, I have a couple questions--

I live barely above the water table and the leach field is 30+ years old. It gets slow, 20 inches of rain this month haven't helped and we also had a pressure-flush of a clogged pipe that added way too much water to the field.

I've decided to add another lane of drain pipes. It makes sense where we live, on the coast, 11 feet elevation, surrounded by holding ponds, rising ocean, thinking long term.

The soil is pure sand. No dirt at all. It is literally a dune.

Q 1: When I lay the gravel, should I put a barrier underneath it? I assume the gravel is still a good idea even in just sand.

Q 2: I plan to put the spur upstream of the D-box, the way the yard lays out it should be super quick and also extend the area that has "grass," best part is there are no roots there. Any problem with upstream if I make sure to keep it level? I like the idea that it will relieve pressure on the older field and let it heal during the hotter months.

Thanks

 

Welcome the forums.

I'm not the pro here but I have learned one thing while being here.... septic system improvements and changes are not DIY improvements.

 

Septic system work can be diy BUT it generally requires a permit from the health dept along with meeting whatever they specify for that plot of land. You might want to look into gravel less leach pipe.

 

Not a pro either, but from what I understand draining the leachate deep into the soil is not the objective. A leach field is intended to be an active part of the digestion of the leachate, combining the sun with bacteria to help turn that liquid into a less polluting fluid.

I'm not sure where you are located but the vast majority of areas all have regulations that require a design first. That's probably even more important from the description of your location.

Bud

 

First time poster with no location mentioned and doing DIY septic leach field work. I'll second marksr and ask if you have gotten a permit for this work you are considering?

Why are you wanting to add only one line? Why not a bull run valve and a second field so you can switch between the two to allow the old field to properly recover?

 

I like your idea Pilot Dane. Also agree that upstream of D box could cause problems...a drain tile cannot be too deep. From what I've read and been told by an engineer, a field cannot be too deep or it can't get oxygen from surface.
Why gravel? Up here, for native soil septic fields we do perc tests, and gravel is too porous.